Boosting Your Immune System
Here is some basic information about how to stay healthy and boost your immune system. It's important to stay healthy, and eating right, exercising, and getting plenty of rest all help. Here are some other helpful hints for staying healthy and keeping your immune system tip top!
Stay Healthy! And Take Care!
Tips for strengthening your immune system during the COVID-19 crisis.
Preparation is power, and there are some vitamins and supplements that can support your immune health. They don’t hold any special magical powers against COVID-19, but they can help your immune system do its job.
Certain vitamins, minerals, and other supplements can support your immune system, even though they haven’t been researched for their impact on COVID-19 specifically.
Vitamin C
“Our bodies burn through vitamin C at a much faster rate when we’re fighting off a pathogen,” says explains Dr. Heather Tynan, a naturopathic physician. “It’s a water-soluble vitamin, so we need to take it regularly. The tolerable daily intake for adults is 2,000 milligrams, and if you take more than that, you might get diarrhea. “Vitamin C is necessary for proper functioning of the epithelial barrier, which helps keep bad bugs from getting in in the first place, as well as a number or immune cells,” adds Tynan. Your adrenal glands also release vitamin C when you’re stressed, so you may need more of it during tough times.
Citrus fruits, broccoli, and bell peppers can help you load up on vitamin C.
Vitamin D
Research shows that, for adults, taking a daily vitamin D supplement of 400 to 2,000 IU can help prevent respiratory infections like the common cold, says Amy Gorin, MS, RDN, a registered dietitian nutritionist. While there’s no proof this prevents COVID-19, “we’ve known for a while that vitamin D is helpful for immunity,” she adds. Since vitamin D is fat-soluble, Tynan recommends asking your healthcare provider to check your base levels before deciding on a supplement.
You can also get vitamin D from sunlight, mushrooms, fortified milk, fatty fish, and eggs.
Zinc
“Zinc is one of the minerals most commonly associated with immune health — not surprising, considering the many immune cells it affects,” explains Tynan. The “gatekeeper” of your immune system, zinc helps both innate (built-in) and acquired immunity, and a deficiency can lead to impaired immune function. Zinc has been shown to help reduce the duration of the common cold, but again, there’s no research on zinc and COVID-19.
Oysters are the food richest in this mineral, followed by beef, crab, and lobster.
Probiotics
Most of our immune system resides in our gut, explains Tynan, “so having a healthy microbiome is of utmost importance when it comes to having well-functioning immunity.” The healthiest microbiome (the “good” bacteria that populate your gut) is “the one with the greatest diversity of beneficial microorganisms,” she adds.
There’s no single best strain or brand, she says. Opt for probiotic food sources, especially fermented ones like kimchi, sauerkraut, miso paste, yogurt, and kombucha.
Selenium
Selenium is an essential mineral that acts as a powerful antioxidant in your body. Within your immune system, it produces a type of protein that’s used to fight pathogens and helps certain types of immune cells function optimally, explains Tynan. Selenium deficiencies have been linked to slower immune responses and impaired immune cell functioning.
The easiest and tastiest way to get your daily value of selenium (55 micrograms) is by eating a couple of Brazil nuts a day. Fatty fish and organ meats also contain this mineral.
Vitamin A
Tynan says vitamin A is an antioxidant that gets an “honorable mention” for immune health. Vitamin A is fat-soluble, so you can overdo it, since your body stores extra in your tissues. “It’s always a good idea to consult with your doctor first,” Tynan says.
She recommends getting beta-carotene (which our bodies convert into vitamin A) from whole foods like sweet potatoes, carrots, bell peppers, and other yellow and orange fruits and veggies.
Vitamin E
She also gives the antioxidant vitamin E an honorable mention for immune function. This is another fat-soluble vitamin that’s best sourced through foods, according to Tynan.
Get your vitamin E from leafy greens, nuts and seeds, and avocado, among other sources.
Tips for a healthy immune system
• The basics of keeping your immune system healthy haven’t changed much since pre-COVID-19. #1, wash our hands with soap and hot water.
• Tynan says it comes down to “optimizing diet, sleep, and exercise; reducing stress and toxic exposures; nurturing a sense of community, purpose, gratitude, and belonging; etc.”
• These determinants of health “play a role in helping our immune systems fight off invaders while at the same time protecting our own cells,” she says.
• Stay hydrated. You’re mostly water, so your body needs to stay adequately hydrated to maintain normal bodily processes.
• Limit the alcohol which can negatively impact your immune function. Stick with the recommended limit of one drink a day for women or two drinks a day for men (or less).
• Eat the rainbow. All the nutrients listed above can be found in real, whole foods. So, as much as you’re able, eat an array of unprocessed foods — including fruits and vegetables.
• Manage stress. Stress impairs your immune function, so as hard as it might seem right now, find ways to cope. FaceTime a friend, do yoga or breath work at home, snuggle your pets, take a nap — whatever you need!
• Keep sharing memes. Those silly messages and photos you and your family keep sending? They’re proof that laughter is still one of the best medicines. Humor can support your immune system!